Villitis of Unknown Etiology in the Placenta of a Pregnancy Complicated by COVID-19
TURKISH JOURNAL OF PATHOLOGY, vol.37, no.2, pp.167-171, 2021 (ESCI, Scopus, TRDizin)
- Publication Type: Article / Article
- Volume: 37 Issue: 2
- Publication Date: 2021
- Doi Number: 10.5146/tjpath.2020.01506
- Journal Name: TURKISH JOURNAL OF PATHOLOGY
- Journal Indexes: Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI), Scopus, Academic Search Premier, EMBASE, MEDLINE, Directory of Open Access Journals, TR DİZİN (ULAKBİM)
- Page Numbers: pp.167-171
- Keywords: COVID-19, Placenta, SARS-CoV-2, Villitis of unknown etiology
- Open Archive Collection: AVESIS Open Access Collection
- Dokuz Eylül University Affiliated: Yes
Abstract
Villitis of unknown etiology (VUE) is noninfectious chronic villitis thought to be associated with fetal growth restriction and stillbirth. COVID-19 and the pandemic SARS-CoV-2 infection can cause an increased risk in pregnant women for potential maternal and fetal complications from an immunological mechanism. We report a 39-week-gestational-age infant delivered to a 37-year-old mother diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2 infection at 37 weeks gestation. The placental examination showed the morphological features of VUE. We showed immunohistochemically that macrophages and CD4-positive T cells predominated in the villous tissue, although elevated numbers of CD8-positive cells were also present. We hypothesize that VUE may represent a maternal anti-viral immune response, in this case to SARS-CoV-2.